Motivation
While Complications are one way to earn hero dice, one which reward players for self-imposed setbacks, a character's Motivation is a different animal altogether. Where Complications are persistent or recurring problems to be overcome, Motivations are what drive a character to adventure in the first place. Motivations are designed to encourage players to have a direction for their characters, to see them grow in more ways than just Character Points and Power Level. Motivations and the Character Arc A character's Motivation defines how a character can earn additional Hero Dice in-game. Generally speaking, a Motivation encourages characters to seek out encounters related to their motivation, and rewards them when they do. A Motivation offers greater reward as a character takes further steps along finding a fulfilling conclusion. For example, a character might be Motivated to hunt werewolves. Any time the character finds him or herself in a battle against werewolves, he or she will earn an a Hero Die as a reward. But if the character finds an ancient runestone which explains how the first werewolves were created, the reward will be greater. The GM might also be encouraged to reward a character with such a Motivation a Hero Die for telling a heartfelt story about how his or her family had been killed by werewolves, or who saves a bystander from being attacked by werewolves. Motivations also include different conclusions that characters can reach to fulfill their Motivations and move on to bigger and better things. The werewolf hunter described above might find and destroy the ancient progenitor of all werewolves, thus lifting the curse from all afflicted by it. Or perhaps the hunter discovers that werewolves aren't all monstrous killing machines and finds a way to help humans and werewolves coexist. Reaching a conclusion allows a character to complete a Motivation, earning a reward of several Hero Dice, and then begin a new Motivation. Reaching such a conclusion is often the work of not one but several adventures, and can be seen as a major milestone in the character's growth. Selecting a Motivation A character may choose a single Motivation during character creation. A character is eligible to choose a new Motivation when he or she reaches the conclusion of his or her current Motivation. Minor Motivations Not all of a character's Motivations need be quite so detailed. A character can have any number of minor Motivations, which function in much the same way as his or her true Motivation. For example, the werewolf hunter from above might also be a deeply faithful person, for whom prayer and religious service are important. This minor Motivation might not be on the character's sheet, but the player should explain how this also motivates the character. The character might earn a Hero Die reward for momentous achievements in this minor Motivation, such as visiting a particularly spectacular church or having an audience with a high-ranking or admired member of the faith. In general, a character can choose multiple other Motivations beyond his or her main Motivation to be minor Motivations. The character is only entitled to earn one additional Hero Die from the lowest level of the Motivation at a time. A character should not have more total Motivations than ½ of the game's Power Level, rounded down. These minor Motivations are very useful for becoming a character's new main Motivation if he or she completes a main Motivation. Adventure Rewards GMs can also use the basic outline described here for a guide to reward characters as they progress through an adventure. If a team of investigators are looking for a missing woman, finding a clue to her whereabouts might earn them a Hero Die each. Capturing one of her kidnappers and successfully interrogating him might earn two Hero Dice. Rescuing the woman might earn three. Sample Motivations * Acceptance * Allegiance * Conviction * Discovery * Dominion * Excellence * Exploration * Greed * Justice * Legacy * Lineage * Love * Recognition * Redemption * Thrill-Seeker * Vendetta Category:Rulebook Category:Characters Category:Fortune Category:Motivation